Halo: Reach Act II: The Fall of Reach
by coldgravy
Summary: Noble 5 is dead, and the entire Covenant fleet has arrived to finish the job on Reach. Reach's last hope is SPARTAN Noble Team, but as each of the SPARTANs kick the bucket, only Noble 6 remains to defend Reach against the Covenant onslaught.
1. Hope Remains

_August 23, 2552_

The freefall back down to the surface from the _Ardent Prayer _had taken its toll on Noble 6, leaving him wounded and unarmed, with the exception of his knife and a pistol kept in a special compartment of his Re-entry pack. After standing back up, Noble 6 turned around to face a nearby mountain range, where the destroyed Covenant Supercarrier now resided, as pieces of debris crashed around it like small comets. Noble 6 couldn't stop thinking about his fellow SPARTAN Jorge, who gave his own life honorably to give Reach a fighting chance. 6 briefly and silently acknowledged his comrade's death, before moving on.

After an hour's march, 6 climbed up a hill overlooking a large city, most likely New Alexandria. Gunfire could be heard and seen all over the center of the city, UNSC and Covenant alike. There were also several Covenant Corvettes hovering above the skyline, bombarding numerous buildings with plasma torpedoes. 6 hopped down from the ledge and proceeded down the boardwalk towards the gunfire. Two UNSC Falcons suddenly flew overhead, which proved that there were UNSC forces defending the city. 6 passed through a damaged building and exited on the other side, where he was suddenly ambushed by a small pack of Skirmishers. Noble 6 quickly took down the Skirmishers with headshots, before picking up the nearby magnum ammo from a dead trooper.

An announcement over comms was made by a UNSC Army trooper, who was alerting the presence of several groups of suicidal Grunts. 6 pushed on through the next building when suddenly a small army of screaming Grunts with plasma grenades charged the SPARTAN. Noble 6 quickly shot the lead Grunt, who dropped its grenades. The plasma grenades went off, effectively taking out all the Grunts. 6 double-checked to make sure that there weren't any more Grunts nearby, before moving into the dark building, pistol armed. 6 turned his helmet's floodlights on, so he could see better.

After leaving the building, Noble 6 found a group of civilians hiding in a corner. "A SPARTAN?", one of the women asked. "Are you here to protect us?".

"That's the plan", 6 replied. He picked up an assault rifle that was on the ground by the corpse of a trooper, and headed outside onto the deck overlooking a park when a Spirit rose up from the park with its troop bay doors open. Inside the Spirit were several large ape-like creatures. They were Jiralhanae, codenamed "Brutes", and were shooting at 6 with their unique spike-shooting Type-25 carbines. Noble 6 returned fire at the Brutes with his assault rifle, but the Spirit turned the Brutes out of 6's line of fire, and deployed them on the far side of the balcony, where a group of Army troopers were in an intense firefight with some more Brutes. 6 sprinted down the balcony towards the troopers' cover.

"I picked up a friendly!", a trooper announced to his squadmates. "A SPARTAN? Well where the hell did he come from?", a female soldier questioned. "Who cares? SPARTAN! Assist!"

"Got it", 6 replied.

While the SPARTAN and the soldiers assaulted the Brutes, the trooper contacted his commanding officer to inform him of their situation. "Evac Team 7 to Kilo 26, we have eyes on Traxus Tower." "Copy Evac Team 7, move to assist the evac", Kilo 26 replied. By the time the trooper finished the call, he regrouped with the rest of the team. "How do we get to the tower?", the female soldier asked. "Elevator in this atrium goes down to the cargo port", the other soldier explained. "Cargo port goes to the tower."

"Well alright troops, let's move like we've got a purpose", 6 declared. The soldiers moved into the atrium. Noble 6's assault rifle was empty, so he picked up a shotgun off the ground. The team moved up the atrium, which was crawling with Grunts and Brutes. While the soldiers provided covering fire, 6 sprinted through the group of Covenant, blasting them with his shotgun. When the Covenant opposition was eliminated, the rest of 6's squad moved up to the elevator. Another squad of troopers showed up, heavily guarding a group of civilians, which quickly moved to the elevator. A trooper activated the elevator, but nothing happened. "Hey what the hell's taking this thing so long?", he asked. "Uh, we're currently evacuating a group of civilians on the floor below you; soon as they reach the cargo port, I'll send the elevator back up", an officer replied. 6 looked up and spotted a Spirit pass over the sunroof, preparing to deploy reinforcements to the courtyard nearby. The Army troopers hustled the civilians into a saferoom next to the elevator, and took defensive positions behind some crates in front of the elevator.

"Hey, where'd the SPARTAN go?", one of the troops asked. 6 reappeared behind the soldiers, carrying a detached M274H. "Let's rock!", he shouted. Moments later, a large group of Brutes charged through the doorway. The soldiers cleared the way, and 6 opened up with his machine gun, gunning down all the Brutes in the blink of an eye, spraying death and bullets all over the place.

"That's all of 'em?", a trooper asked. His question was suddenly answered when a large Chief Brute with a Gravity Hammer- the Brute equivalent to the Elite energy sword -grabbed the soldier's head from behind and launched him towards a wall, shattering his skull. 6 resumed drilling the beast with his HMG. When the turret ran out of ammo, 6 pulled his shotgun out, and began blasting the leviathan in the face. The Army soldiers moved out of cover and gave the SPARTAN covering fire with their assault rifles. Eventually the Chieftain, panting, dropped to the ground, bleeding violet-colored blood. "I'm one tough hombre", 6 commented to the dead beast.

At the same time, the elevator finally came up, and there was a soldier waiting for 6. "We've got this area controlled SPARTAN," the female trooper stated. "Head down the elevator." 6 nodded to her in respect, and she nodded back, before moving the rest of the platoon and the civilians to a different location. 6 walked into the elevator, and it went down.

"If you're trying to get to the tower, you're too late Lieutenant", the officer from earlier stated. "Corvette over the starport pounded the hell outta the place. Cargo port's impassible on foot; rooftop evacs are lost. We could use the Executive Landing Pad 'cept there's no easy way to get there. A group of ODST specialists are working a plan; they might appreciate some backup."

"Sound's good to me", 6 replied.


	2. An ODST named Moss

When the elevator reached its destination, 6 walked out into a small atrium which was filled with Army medics using it as both a shelter and a melancholy makeshift hospital for wounded civilians and soldiers. As 6 walked through, he felt terrible as he viewed the results of the Covenant onslaught: a man weeping in the corner by his dead friend, a woman with her crying baby, who was covered in several scratches and cuts, and an Army soldier with the lower part of his left leg missing. 6 couldn't bear to watch the suffering, and decided to turn it around. "Where's this ODST team I'm supposed to meet?", he asked a trooper. "On the other side of the hall there Lieutenant. Right through the triage".

6 had worked with a team of ODSTs in repelling Covenant boarding parties aboard the UNSC Frigate _Acta non Verba_ before, in 2550. The ODST company he was fighting alongside proved to be very effective in battle, and he complemented on their abilities. One of the ODSTs acted very rude and didn't really care about the complement, and 6 didn't know why. He asked one of the regular Marines on the ship, and he said it was because ODSTs have a fear that they'll be replaced by SPARTANs, as the SPARTANs were the most elite war machines in the UNSC arsenal, but also because awhile back, a SPARTAN-II trainee was challenged to a fight by a squad of ODSTs, and the trainee won the fight. Half of the ODSTs were killed; and the others were severely wounded. The freakiest part was that the trainee was only around 13 years old, and that's why the ODSTs aren't too comfortable with fighting alongside SPARTANs, especially SPARTAN-IIs.

Noble 6 joined the ODST team on the deck outside of the atrium. Banshee fighters were circling the cargo port, shooting at the ODSTs briefly before circling back around and doing it again. One of the ODSTs, however, was prepared with a rocket launcher, and each time a Banshee flew towards the squad, he shot it out of the sky. While the trooper shot down the Banshees, 3 of the ODSTs turned around to greet 6. "Hey, there he is, that's the one they're talkin' about!", one of the ODSTs remarked. "My name's Moss", said the commanding officer, shaking 6's hand. "Radio's buzzing about you SPARTAN; you feel like jumping?", he asked. "Got an extra jetpack." The ODSTs lead 6 to a makeshift armory, where he collected additional ammunition, and to a supply rack containing several UNSC jetpacks each with a frog design painted in the center. 6 put on his jetpack and joined the rest of the team. "Welcome to the Bullfrogs!", Moss announced. "Other side on my mark: 3- 2- 1- Jump!" The ODSTs and Noble 6 took off and landed on one of the platforms in the center. "We're gonna capture the landing pad on the executive wing so the evac birds can land", Moss declared. "Try and keep up, Spartan."

After jumping from platform to platform, while dodging Banshees, 6's team landed on a deck on the other side, which was occupied by more Brutes and Grunts, which were both lead by another Brute Chieftain. "I've got the Chieftain!", 6 shouted to the troopers. "Moss, you and your guys mop up everyone else!" "I'm on it!", the ODST sergeant replied. "Donovan, Mack, direct your fire on the Grunts. Luke, you and I'll take care of the Brutes!" While the ODST team took down the other Covenant, Noble 6 took down the Chieftain. This one wasn't as big of a challenge as the previous one, so Noble 6 took it down by shooting its mask off, then blasting its exposed face with the shotgun. When the Chieftain had died, 6 rejoined his squad, who had just gunned down the last Brute. The team regrouped by the port entrance to Traxus Tower. "Head up to the roof level, SPARTAN! I'll come with you!", Moss ordered. "The rest of you; rejoin Price at the hospital so we can get the civies out of here!"

Because the elevator was damaged, Noble 6 and Moss used their jetpacks to get up to the roof level, where they ran into a few civilians and their Army escort. "Lead the way SPARTAN; we'll follow!", a trooper stated. Noble 6 and Moss continued their rampage towards the landing pad, terminating all Covenant resistance. The opposition was stiff, including several Grunts, Jackals, Brutes, Skirmishers with Focus Rifles, and another Chieftain with a Gravity Hammer, but after an intense firefight, the SPARTAN, the ODST sergeant, the Army troopers and the civilians had reached the top floor.

6 took a quick look inside the building. The landing pad was straight ahead, but there were two enemy Shade turrets which were preventing any Falcon or Pelican support. In addition, several Brutes were standing guard. There was another Chieftain, but instead of a Gravity Hammer, it was wielding a Fuel Rod Gun. "Moss, guard these civilians. The rest of you, take out the Brutes. I'll handle the anti-air guns", Noble 6 declared.

Noble 6 pulled out a grenade and threw it at the Shade furthest away from him. The grenade exploded, destroying the Shade, and the Brutes turned to face the SPARTAN. When the Brutes turned around, the soldiers charged into the room, guns a blazing. The Brutes turned back around to face their attackers, and that gave Noble 6 the opportunity he'd been waiting for: he shot the Grunt gunner out of the remaining Shade with his sidearm, and commandeered the turret. The Chieftain turned around, but Noble 6 was faster, and gunned down the large Brute. 6 hopped out of the turret, and when the pad was clear, all of the troopers and civilians moved onto the pad. "Yankee 9 to Echo Dispatch; landing pad is clear. Send in the evac birds", Moss announced. "Copy Yankee 9; birds away", the other soldier replied. As a Pelican, backed up by two Falcons, arrived to evacuate the civilians, Moss turned to face Noble 6. "You know Lieutenant, I don't know what the other Helljumpers think, but you're one badass SPARTAN", said Moss. "Thanks Sergeant. And you're a damn formidable Helljumper", 6 replied. "Pleasure jumpin' with you SPARTAN. We'll hold this location. You get on that Falcon, make sure those transports get outta here in one piece. 6 saluted Moss one last time, before climbing aboard the Falcon's mounted M274H turret.


	3. Evacuation

Once the civilians and soldiers had entered the Pelican, the two Falcons took off, flying across the rooftops, where many small skirmishes between Brutes and Army troopers were taking place. "City's been under siege for the last five days", the pilot commented over comms. "Thought we had it in hand, then those corvettes showed up. Our fleet's scattered, pulling back. Hell, we all got orders to evacuate. Guess some of us just don't like leaving a job half-finished..."

At the same time, one of the transport pilots, Delta 15, made an announcement that they were ready to take off, which Evac Dispatch acknowledged. At the same time, Noble 6's pilot notified him that the airspace through the city was too hot, so they would be taking an alternate course, following the shoreline until they reached their destination, Carracalla Park.

"Delta 15 to Dispatch. Banshee squadron on my tail. Taking fire!", the panicked pilot alerted.

"Copy Delta 15, can you-"

"Mayday! Port engine's hit, we're going in! I'm gonna try and set her down!"

An Army sergeant joined the channel, trying to request air support. "Fox Actual to UNSC _Stalwart Dawn_, requesting air strike on Covenant Corvette over starport." "Solid copy Fox Actual", the _Dawn_ replied, "Longswords unavailable at this time, over." Another pilot, 6 Echo 2, made an alert that it needed to take off. "Hold on Echo 2", said the sergeant. "_Stalwart Dawn_, I have multiple personal craft loaded with civilians. I have _got_ to get them out of this city. I need air support, _now_!", he begged.

"As soon as something frees up, you'll be the first to-"

"Not good enough!"

Eventually 6 Echo 2's patience ended. "I've got 600 souls on board, Sergeant Major, I can't _wait_ any longer!" "Negative, Echo 2, I cannot cover you. Do _**not **_take off!"

"Dammit!", the agitated pilot growled.

Noble 6's Falcon turned around the corner and found themselves at the bay. On one side of the bay was Carracalla Park, which was occupied by Covenant and UNSC troopers locked in combat, and on the other side was a large deck with 3 civilian escape ships, one of which was taking off. It was 6 Echo 2 which, despite the Sergeant Major's warnings, took off. Suddenly Noble 6 and the Falcon's crew looked up in horror as a plasma torpedo from one of the Covenant Corvettes overhead struck the port side of the craft, igniting it and crippling the ship.

"Mayday, Mayday!", the pilot shouted.

"6 Echo 2, can you maintain altitude?", the concerned sergeant asked.

"Negative! We're going down!"

The ship crashed straight into the water, exploding and sinking. "Son of a bitch...", the pilot commented, tears beginning to form, "I can't watch this."

"Fox Actual, should we send search-and-rescue birds?", asked Dispatch.

"Negative Dispatch. No point", the sergeant replied.

After witnessing the massacre, 6's Falcon landed on the beachhead that the Sergeant Major and his men were defending. 6 hopped out of the Falcon and walked over to the sergeant. "SPARTAN, Sergeant Major Duvall", the sergeant introduced. "Awful day so far. Let's keep it from getting any worse, huh? Covvies are all over my missile batteries, and I got five thousand civilians waiting for passage out. I need you to arm those batteries and fire those missiles from the central terminal. Understood? Corvette's been a pain in my ass for too damn long. Give it hell, Spartan!" Duvall then picked up a green weapon and handed it to 6, who had never seen one before. "What's this?", the SPARTAN asked.

"Shit man, you're a SPARTAN; I thought you'd already know!", the Sergeant Major laughed, "It's a M6 G/GNR, but it's known as the Spartan Laser. This is the most badass weapon I've ever seen; I heard that it can destroy any kind of Covenant vehicle with a single shot- well except for their ships, of course."

"I'll give it a shot", 6 replied.

"Troopers!", Duvall announced, "We need to push em' back off our beach!". Suddenly a Covenant Ghost appeared and began firing at the soldiers. Noble 6 aimed at the Ghost, held the trigger for a few seconds, and the Ghost was immediately blown up by a large, red, powerful laser blast. "Jesus Christ...", 6 muttered in amazement.

Once the Ghost was taken care of, Duvall and his men charged forward. "Remember SPARTAN, reactivate those missile batteries", Duvall ordered. "We'll take care of the rest!". Noble 6 sprinted down to the first missile battery, which was occupied by a small pack of Brutes. The Brutes fired at 6, but to no avail, as 6 merely dodged their shots, and threw two frag grenades at the Brutes, killing them all. 6 went up to the missile's control panel, entered the override code, and brought it back online.

"First battery's online", Duvall informed 6, "Other one's to your north."

Another civilian transport, 7 Echo 3, which was waiting at the starport, contacted Duvall and Noble 6. "Sergeant Major, Covenant are bangin' on my bay door; I've got families and wounded aboard, I gotta get airborne."

"Easy, 7 Echo 3", Duvall assured, "SPARTAN's gonna clear the skies." By the time Duvall had replied, Noble 6 had killed a group of Jackals at the second missile launcher and reactivated it. A pair of Falcons flew down and dropped off additional troopers to reinforce the missile batteries. "That's it; batteries primed. Now get over the the east complex, and fire those missiles!", said Duvall. "Sergeant, the Covvies are almost through my door!", the panicked 7 Echo 3 shouted. "Steady Echo 3, that Corvette is still up there!", Duvall insisted. Noble 6 sprinted up the stairway to the building, where he was greeted by two Chief Brutes, one with a Gravity Hammer, and the other with a Fuel Rod Gun. 6 quickly lined up his shot with the Spartan Laser, and fired a blast that brutally killed both Chieftains.

"That's it! They've breached the landing bay!", the frightened pilot shouted. "Copy that! Now or never, SPARTAN!", Duvall ordered 6. The SPARTAN hit the launch button, and the two missile launchers targeted the Corvette closest to the starport. "Missile defense is online! All transports, you are clear for takeoff, repeat; you are clear for takeoff! Go _**now**_!", Duvall yelled. As the transports lifted off, the missile launchers fired a salvo of rockets at the front of the Corvette, disabling its weapons and crippling the ship severely. With no other options, the damaged Corvette changed course and retreated away from the starport.

"Civilian transports away! You saved a lotta today SPARTAN", 7 Echo 3 commented. 6 then began to hear a familiar voice, that of Kat.

"...Do you copy? Repeat, this is Noble 2. Noble 6, Noble 5, do you copy?"

"This is 6. Go ahead, Noble 2."

"We picked up your transponder about an hour ago, but could not risk open comms. We're getting nothing from Jorge."

"He didn't make it...", 6 quietly replied.

"Understood. We're bringing you to us."

Noble 6 pulled out a flare and lit it, and took one last look at the transports, containing thousands of rescued civilians, flew away from the burning city.


	4. Loss after Loss

_ August 23, 2552_

_3 hours after civilian evacuation_

As Noble 6 was transported to his rendezvous point with Commander Carter via Pelican, 6 gazed out the open troop bay at the dark city below. It was nighttime, but the numerous flames lit up the scene of the numerous destroyed, damaged, crippled, or blasted skyscrapers. 6 knew that, thanks to his efforts a few hours ago at the starport, hundreds of people were able to successfully escape the city, but he felt terrible thinking about the thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of civilians that weren't as fortunate.

The Pelican eventually arrived at the rendezvous site, and 6 hopped out and walked over to Carter, who briefed him on the situation: The Covenant were jamming all communications in the city, so Kat couldn't get in touch with Command. She had decided to requisition Noble 6's help in taking out the jammers. Because the city was impassable on foot, Kat was able to get a Falcon for 6 to use. Because 6 was previously a pilot, Falcons were the easiest things for him to pilot, so it wasn't too much of a hustle.

Noble 6 hopped into the Falcon, started it up and took off. It took him a minute to get reacquainted with the controls, but after a quick flight, during which he shot down an enemy fighter with the chin-mounted M638 Autocannon- the same type on the chins of Pelicans, but in a more compact version.

Once 6 was warmed up, he was contacted by Kat, who filled in the blanks for him: the source of the comm-jamming were 3 Covenant jamming generators, which were placed in strategic locations: the New Alexandria Hospital, a nightclub known as "Club Errera", and in a penthouse at the top of the Sinoviet Center.

Noble 6's first objective was at the hospital, because in addition to the jammer, Kat lost contact with the Army troopers sent there to destroy it, which would require investigation. As 6 flew over one of the damaged buildings, he suddenly felt and heard rumbling. He backed up and looked at the building, which suddenly crumbled apart, crashing into the mist below.

"Damn...", 6 muttered.

6 reached the hospital, and once the Falcon landed, ordered the two troopers manning the turrets to guard the Falcon. 6 pulled out his assault rifle and quietly entered the building. Inside, there were several sleeping Grunts, covered with a glowing shield, which indicated that there was an Engineer in the vacinity. 6 pulled out his knife and, one by one, quietly slit the throats of the Grunts. At this time, the Engineer floated up, but when it saw 6 and the assassinated Grunts, it panicked, and flew back down to the Brutes guarding it. The Brutes alerted the nearby Grunts and Jackals, which ran up the spiral staircase, but were all gunned down by 6. 6 realized he could not bring down the Brutes while they had shields, so 6 picked up a DMR off the ground, took aim at the head of the Engineer, and fired a round, which blew the creature apart. Replacing his now-empty assault rifle with a shotgun nearby, 6 dashed down the stairs, killing the Brutes while on the run. By the time he reached the bottom, there weren't any Covenant remaining.

Entering the next area, Noble 6 peered down the atrium, and spotted the generator, as well as another Engineer and its Brute guards. There were also two tied-up Army soldiers next to the Brutes. In order to distract the Brutes from the troopers, 6 launched an attack. As predicted, the Brutes turned to face their attacker, while the two troopers cut through their bindings, picked up their guns, and killed the Engineer. Once the Engineer was dead, the Brutes were brought down quickly without a hassle.

"Thanks for the assist, SPARTAN", said the head trooper, "Jammer's right over here." 6 walked over to the generator with an explosive charge, planted it, and backed up. The charge went off, destroying the jammer. Kat congratulated 6 for taking it down, but the victory was short lived, as a small team of Elite Rangers arrived and started attacking 6 and the troopers. One by one, 6 picked each Ranger off with DMR headshots until all four were dead. 6 and the troopers moved around the corner, but suddenly the female trooper was shot in the head by an Elite Ultra, who laughed evilly.

"No!", the other trooper shouted with horror. Overcome by rage, he snatched 6's shotgun, moved up to the Elite, and shoved the barrel into its mouth.

"EAT THIS!", the furious soldier shouted. He pulled the trigger, blasting through the Ultra's skull and out through the back of its head. The Elite dropped to the ground in a pool of blood. Two Skirmishers came down the stairway, but suffered the same fate as the Elite Ultra.

The soldier rushed to his fallen comrade, tears in his eyes. Feeling sympathetic, Noble 6 approached him.

"Hey kid..."

"HERE'S YOUR FUCKIN' SHOTGUN!", the sobbing trooper growled, throwing the weapon to 6.

"I'm sorry, kid. Really, I am."

"She was my girlfriend", he quietly cried.

"You have my sympathy. I need to keep going, and I think you should, too. That's probably what she'd want you to do."

"You're right", he sniffled.

"I'll call in a Falcon to pick you up."

"Thanks, SPARTAN."

After exiting the hospital, 6 hopped back into the Falcon, and stood by for further orders.


	5. Party Time

As 6 flew through the smoldering forest of skyscrapers, Kat contacted him to praise his work and to give him directions to the next jamming generator, which was at Club Errera, but during their briefing, they received a distress call from callsign Oscar 18, who was pinned down on a rooftop by Jackals with Focus Rifles on the surrounding skyscrapers. Because they were pinned down and a Pelican couldn't make it to their position in time, Noble 6 was the closest aerial unit in the area. At Kat's agreement, Noble 6 flew over to Oscar 18's position, and the snipers were shredded to bits by 6's gunners. By the time the Jackals had been terminated, a passing Pelican was able to stop and pick up the survivors.

"Thanks SPARTAN", said the trooper sergeant. "Those snipers had our number."

"Glad we could help", 6 replied. Once again, another distress call came in, this one from the trooper platoon sent to deactivate the jammer at the night club.

"4 Charlie 27 to Command; request immediate assistance!"

"Go ahead 27", Kat replied.

"We're in the nightclub at the Vyrant Telecom Tower! Got Hunters between us and the jammer!"

"Copy 27, help is on the way", Kat answered, "Noble 6, I'm sending you coordinates for the Vyrant tower. Go get those troopers unstuck!"

Noble 6 flew over to the tower, but couldn't land, as there were 2 Fuel Rod Shades that would blow his Falcon to smithereens. Luckily, the Falcon's M638 Autocannon was effective at long range, and with a couple of the Autocannon's 40mm bursts, the turrets were reduced to scrap metal.

6 quickly landed on one of the landing pads, and, with shotgun armed, entered the nightclub. Down on the dance floor were 3 or 4 Hunters, which were firing at the troopers in cover behind the bar. 6 eyed a rocket launcher by a dead trooper, and with quick thinking and deadly action, killed the Hunters.

Once he was sure that the area was secure, Noble 6 went over to where the jammer was, on a balcony overlooking the dance floor. 6 backed up a few meters, and fired his remaining rocket at the generator, blasting it to pieces. He tossed the empty rocket launcher onto the ground, and went back outside to his Falcon.

"Well done, Noble 6", Kat remarked. "But don't stop yet. We've got reports of a downed Pelican on a rooftop southwest of your position. Go check for survivors." Immediately Noble 6 took off, and eventually spotted the smoke coming from the crashsite. While en route to the crashed Pelican, 6's Falcon came under fire by a long-range Shade turret. 6 quickly dove around and destroyed it. Once the threat was no longer a priority, 6 landed at the crashsite, hopped out, and took a look inside the troop bay. There were 3 dead troopers in the bay, but then 6 heard coughing from the cockpit. Prying the door open, he found the pilot dead, and the copilot badly wounded, but alive.

"This is Noble 6 of SPARTAN Noble Team, I was sent here to see if you're okay?"

The pilot coughed, then turned around. "Aw man, am I glad to see you guys. I got my self into a bit of trouble here. You wouldn't have happened to spot a Shade turret on your way here, would you?"

"Yep, and it's gone", 6 replied. "We've already called in a Falcon to extract you."

"Thanks man", the wheezing trooper replied.

A few minutes later, a friendly Falcon arrived to pick up the wounded pilot, while Noble 6 returned to his to take out the final jammer.

"Nice work", Kat commented. "If there's any more trouble, I'll inform you. For now, just take out the last jammer."


	6. Just another Bughunt

After Noble 6 took off in his Falcon, another distress call came in.

"Mayday! Mayday! 7 Delta 19 to all UNSC forces!"

"What's your status, 19?", Kat replied.

"We found the jammer, but we're getting' hit! Request immediate assistance! Sinoviet Center is -ARGGG!"

"You still with me, 19?", Kat asked with concern. "7 Delta 19, do you copy? Dammit. 6, help those troopers if you can, but get that jammer offline either way. I'm uploading coordinates." Noble 6 flew through the maze of burning buildings until he reached the Sinoviet building. From his angle, there was no visible landing pad, so he circled around until he found a suitable location to set down. There were several Grunts and a Jackal on the pad, so 6 backed up and eliminated the enemy infantry from a safe distance with the 40mm Autocannon. After killing all the Covenant on the pad, he set the helicopter down and hopped out. Up the stairway to the elevators were a small pocket of Brute resistance, which was quickly taken care of. 6 walked up to the elevator, activated it, and waited for it to come down to his floor. Kat also informed 6 that she wasn't receiving anything from the trooper squad, so he should keep his eyes peeled.

The elevator reached 6's floor, and he entered the floor number where the troopers lost contact. The elevator reached its destination, and 6 cautiously crept out with his shotgun, scanning each corner for movement. On the floor around him were several dead UNSC troopers, but no signs of Covenant. Proceeding through the inquisitively-designed penthouse, 6 reached the jammer, which was in a small, empty, white room. 6 examined the control board and overloaded the jammer, disabling it permanently.

6 suddenly heard a faint flutter of wings and slowly looked up to see several Covenant Drones watching him. One quickly dived down from the ceiling to attack 6, who blasted it apart with his shotgun, leaving broken wings and limbs splattered across the floor. The rest of the Drones pulled out their weapons and fired at 6. As the SPARTAN backed up, he was suddenly caught off guard by a hidden Drone which was lying in wait. The insectoid knocked 6 onto the ground and started attacking him. Quickly, 6 pulled out a magnum and fired 5 shots through the Drone's abdomen. The Drone dropped back, screeching in pain before eventually bleeding to death. Noble 6 snatched his shotgun off of the ground and sprinted for the elevator. The swarm of Drones flew around and cut 6 off from the elevator. 6 resumed his shotgun rampage, blasting the attacking insectoids that got too close for comfort. After killing the eighth Drone, his shotgun ran out of slugs, so he threw the empty weapon at one of the Drones, splitting through its body like a spear. 6 picked up an assault rifle from one of the dead troopers and sprayed relentlessly at the Drones. 6 eventually realized that for every Drone he killed, another would show up, so he decided to bug out. Blazing through the swarm with his rifle, 6 sprinted towards the elevator and dove inside. He quickly shut the doors, and the elevator went back down to the landing pad.

"You still with me, 6?", a concerned Kat asked.

"Yup. Jammer's offline. The troopers are dead, and I ran into some Covenant, but it was just another bughunt", 6 replied. Kat then contacted Carter, informing him that all three jamming generators were neutralized. "Solid copy, Noble 2", answered Carter, "New orders. All personnel are to be evacuated from ONI HQ. Say Confirm."

"Confirm, ONI tower evac-"

A large explosion was heard over comms, followed by static. "Noble 2! Noble 2, Sitrep!", a worried Carter asked. Kat instantly replied back. "Covvies are hitting the tower in force! They must have zeroed my signal!"

"Get that evac started!", Carter ordered. "Roger that!", Kat replied. "Noble 6, get over here and cover our evac Pelicans. I need you overhead, _**now**_!"

6 jumped back into his Falcon and quickly flew towards the ONI building, where he could see numerous Banshees circling the base, Phantoms floating in place while bombarding it, and six long-range Shade turrets on the buildings around the ONI tower. The Pelicans would have no chance of taking off without the Shades destroyed, and with assistance from one of the Pelicans waiting for takeoff, Whiskey 35, located each of the Shade emplacements. While another Falcon took on the Banshees, 6 hovered around the tower, gunning down each of the Shades. Whiskey 35 was the first Pelican to escape, followed by Whiskey 37 and Whiskey 36. Once the last Pelican had left the building, all the Shades had been destroyed. The remaining Phantoms and Banshees turned and flew away from the building.

"Noble 6, you are one steely-eyed SPARTAN", Kat commented. "I'm extending a landing pad now. Come home, Lieutenant."

Noble 6 brought his Falcon up to the landing pad and got out. One of his gunners got out and hopped into the cockpit. "Good flyin' with ya SPARTAN", the trooper commented, and proceeded to fly off towards the retreating Pelicans. Noble 6 turned around and walked into the building.


	7. First Glassing

Noble 6 took an elevator down to Kat and the rest of Noble Team inside a heavily-damaged room with a decent view of the rest of the city. Carter was looking out the window, next to a crashed Banshee which had gotten tangled up in some wiring, while Jun was across from Carter, looking through a pair of binoculars. Emile was sitting against a crate on the floor, sharpening his kukri, and Kat was attempting to fix a disabled transmitter. "Look at this place", Jun commented in disbelief. "Used to be the crown jewel. Huh. Not anymore." Jun turned around, noticing 6, who had just entered the room. "Hey, you made it!"

"It's a regular family reunion...", Emile muttered. Noble 6 turned to face Emile, who noticed Jorge's dog tags in his hand. "Keep 'em. I'll honor him my own way", he said, pointing his knife at himself. "Jorge always said he would never leave Reach", Jun replied. Emile chuckled, and the rest of the SPARTANs turned to look at him. "The big man _was _sentimental..." "He gave his life thinking he'd just saved the planet. We should all be so lucky", Carter stated.

"Sir, that true about Gauntlet, Red, and Echo teams assigned to civilian evac ops?", Jun asked. "Those are senior level communiques...", Carter snapped at Kat. "I hear what I hear", she explained. "Point is, why put SPARTANs on defensive deployments?"

"I need that link to SATCOM, Kat!", Carter ordered.

"Chasing it, but this console's got more shrapnel than transceivers", Kat replied. "But you didn't answer my question."

"You wanna know if we're losing?"

"I know we're losing. I want to know if we've _lost_."

Carter turned to face the window, but at that moment, the radio suddenly started beeping. "Colonel Holland! What's he doing hailing us on an open channel?", Kat asked in confusion. "Let's hear it", answered Carter.

"...-Near the southwest quadrant of the city, over? Sierra 259, if you are receiving, I am authorizing override of radio-security protocols to link with this channel."

"How long for a secure link?", Carter asked.

"Well, I can't guarantee secure anymore", Kat replied.

"Could Covenant trace it to us?"

"I could..."

"Noble Leader, this is a Priority 1 hail", Holland continued, "If you are receiving, acknowledge immediately."

Kat handed Carter the communicator. "Keep it brief."

"Carter here. Yes Sir", Carter replied.

Suddenly, Jun noticed something in his binoculars and leaned forwards to get a better view. "We've got movement!", he declared. "Multiple Covenant vehicles vacating the area, and they're in a hurry..."

"How often do you see Covenant retreat for no reason?", Emile questioned.

Suddenly Kat picked something significant up. "Radiation flare! Big! 40 million roentgens!", she announced.

"Just lost Holland; what's going on?", Carter asked.

"Atomic excitement scrambled the signal! 90 million now!"

"Source?"

"Airborne! Close!"

"How close?"

Suddenly a large plasma blast shook the building. "**That close**!", Kat yelled. The SPARTANs quickly dived to the floor as a large shockwave blasted through the large window, with fire, burnt debris, and glass shards blown through the room in a powerful wind. A few seconds later, the explosions and strong winds ceased, Noble Team got up, and ran into the nearby elevators.

"First glassing?", Kat asked Noble 6, "Me too." 6 nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, I'm on it", she continued. "Our best bet is a fallout bunker on Sublevel 2. We get orders from Holland, Sir?", she asked.

"We're being redeployed to Sword Base", Carter answered.

"_Sword_?", Jun questioned in disbelief. "Covenant own it now!"

"Which is why they want us for a torch-and-burn op, to keep Dr. Halsey's excavation data from falling into the wrong hands!", he explained.

By this point, Carter, Jun, and Emile's elevator stopped at Sublevel 2. The three SPARTANs got out and quickly sprinted towards the bunker, passing under a large breach in the ceiling in the process, with Kat and Noble 6 close behind.

"If it hasn't already!", Kat continued.

"Maybe", Carter replied. "But according to Holland, the Covenant are still hunting for something!"

"Where does he get off calling a demolition op Priority 1-"

Suddenly Kat's sentence was abruptly cut off when a Covenant Needle Rifle struck the back of her helmet from above. The projectile went straight through her helmet and out her visor. Kat instantly dropped to the ground motionless. Catching her body in his arms, Noble 6 pulled out her holstered magnum and looked up from the hole at a hovering Phantom. Suddenly 6 noticed something alarming. The shooter wasn't a Jackal or a Skirmisher: it was an Elite Field Marshall, _the _Field Marshall that 6 and the team battled at Visegrad, the one that escaped. 6 opened fire at the Elite with the handgun, and the other SPARTANs, assault rifles armed, followed 6's lead and opened fire at the Elite as well. As soon as the rest of the team began firing, the Phantom flew away. 6 fired four more shots before tossing the emptied magnum away. 6 dragged Kat's lifeless body into the bunker, while the rest of the SPARTANs opened the bunker door.

"Come on, come on! Get in here!", Carter barked.

"Let's go, come on!", Jun added.

Once 6 got Kat's body inside the bunker, the SPARTANs sealed the door.

_August 26, 2552_

The surviving SPARTANs exited the ground-level bunker into the dark, burned, destroyed city streets below. As a result of the glassing, the ground was now a river of molten glass. Carter was cradling Kat's lifeless corpse, and Noble 6 observed silently, feeling a significant depression inside himself, and respect for how Kat took the bullet. At the same time, Jun pulled out a signal flare, and tossed it onto the ground, as a Pelican dispatched to pick up the survivors approached them.


	8. Returning to Sword Base

Noble 6 took an elevator down to Kat and the rest of Noble Team inside a heavily-damaged room with a decent view of the rest of the city. Carter was looking out the window, next to a crashed Banshee which had gotten tangled up in some wiring, while Jun was across from Carter, looking through a pair of binoculars. Emile was sitting against a crate on the floor, sharpening his kukri, and Kat was attempting to fix a disabled transmitter. "Look at this place", Jun commented in disbelief. "Used to be the crown jewel. Huh. Not anymore." Jun turned around, noticing 6, who had just entered the room. "Hey, you made it!"

"It's a regular family reunion...", Emile muttered. Noble 6 turned to face Emile, who noticed Jorge's dog tags in his hand. "Keep 'em. I'll honor him my own way", he said, pointing his knife at himself. "Jorge always said he would never leave Reach", Jun replied. Emile chuckled, and the rest of the SPARTANs turned to look at him. "The big man _was _sentimental..." "He gave his life thinking he'd just saved the planet. We should all be so lucky", Carter stated.

"Sir, that true about Gauntlet, Red, and Echo teams assigned to civilian evac ops?", Jun asked. "Those are senior level communiques...", Carter snapped at Kat. "I hear what I hear", she explained. "Point is, why put SPARTANs on defensive deployments?"

"I need that link to SATCOM, Kat!", Carter ordered.

"Chasing it, but this console's got more shrapnel than transceivers", Kat replied. "But you didn't answer my question."

"You wanna know if we're losing?"

"I know we're losing. I want to know if we've _lost_."

Carter turned to face the window, but at that moment, the radio suddenly started beeping. "Colonel Holland! What's he doing hailing us on an open channel?", Kat asked in confusion. "Let's hear it", answered Carter.

"...-Near the southwest quadrant of the city, over? Sierra 259, if you are receiving, I am authorizing override of radio-security protocols to link with this channel."

"How long for a secure link?", Carter asked.

"Well, I can't guarantee secure anymore", Kat replied.

"Could Covenant trace it to us?"

"I could..."

"Noble Leader, this is a Priority 1 hail", Holland continued, "If you are receiving, acknowledge immediately."

Kat handed Carter the communicator. "Keep it brief."

"Carter here. Yes Sir", Carter replied.

Suddenly, Jun noticed something in his binoculars and leaned forwards to get a better view. "We've got movement!", he declared. "Multiple Covenant vehicles vacating the area, and they're in a hurry..."

"How often do you see Covenant retreat for no reason?", Emile questioned.

Suddenly Kat picked something significant up. "Radiation flare! Big! 40 million roentgens!", she announced.

"Just lost Holland; what's going on?", Carter asked.

"Atomic excitement scrambled the signal! 90 million now!"

"Source?"

"Airborne! Close!"

"How close?"

Suddenly a large plasma blast shook the building. "**That close**!", Kat yelled. The SPARTANs quickly dived to the floor as a large shockwave blasted through the large window, with fire, burnt debris, and glass shards blown through the room in a powerful wind. A few seconds later, the explosions and strong winds ceased, Noble Team got up, and ran into the nearby elevators.

"First glassing?", Kat asked Noble 6, "Me too." 6 nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, I'm on it", she continued. "Our best bet is a fallout bunker on Sublevel 2. We get orders from Holland, Sir?", she asked.

"We're being redeployed to Sword Base", Carter answered.

"_Sword_?", Jun questioned in disbelief. "Covenant own it now!"

"Which is why they want us for a torch-and-burn op, to keep Dr. Halsey's excavation data from falling into the wrong hands!", he explained.

By this point, Carter, Jun, and Emile's elevator stopped at Sublevel 2. The three SPARTANs got out and quickly sprinted towards the bunker, passing under a large breach in the ceiling in the process, with Kat and Noble 6 close behind.

"If it hasn't already!", Kat continued.

"Maybe", Carter replied. "But according to Holland, the Covenant are still hunting for something!"

"Where does he get off calling a demolition op Priority 1-"

Suddenly Kat's sentence was abruptly cut off when a Covenant Needle Rifle struck the back of her helmet from above. The projectile went straight through her helmet and out her visor. Kat instantly dropped to the ground motionless. Catching her body in his arms, Noble 6 pulled out her holstered magnum and looked up from the hole at a hovering Phantom. Suddenly 6 noticed something alarming. The shooter wasn't a Jackal or a Skirmisher: it was an Elite Field Marshall, _the _Field Marshall that 6 and the team battled at Visegrad, the one that escaped. 6 opened fire at the Elite with the handgun, and the other SPARTANs, assault rifles armed, followed 6's lead and opened fire at the Elite as well. As soon as the rest of the team began firing, the Phantom flew away. 6 fired four more shots before tossing the emptied magnum away. 6 dragged Kat's lifeless body into the bunker, while the rest of the SPARTANs opened the bunker door.

"Come on, come on! Get in here!", Carter barked.

"Let's go, come on!", Jun added.

Once 6 got Kat's body inside the bunker, the SPARTANs sealed the door.

_August 26, 2552_

The surviving SPARTANs exited the ground-level bunker into the dark, burned, destroyed city streets below. As a result of the glassing, the ground was now a river of molten glass. Carter was cradling Kat's lifeless corpse, and Noble 6 observed silently, feeling a significant depression inside himself, and respect for how Kat took the bullet. At the same time, Jun pulled out a signal flare, and tossed it onto the ground, as a Pelican dispatched to pick up the survivors approached them.


	9. Change of Plans

Opening the door to the main atrium, Noble 6 was aghast at what had happened to it: the large window had a massive hole in it, the smaller windows were cracked and chipped, the small walkways leading up to the different levels had collapsed, the ground was covered in rubble, and the central statue was badly damaged. Occupying the ground level was an Engineer, which was providing shields to a nearby Elite General with a concussion rifle. There were also several cloaked Spec-Op Elites, and although the SPARTANs couldn't tell initially, Noble 6 knew that any Covenant near the Engineer were covered in a glowing overshield, which ultimately gave their positions aware. While 6, Emile and Carter took down the cloaked Elites, Jun took aim at the Engineer with his sniper rifle, and fired a shot which killed the creature instantly. Once the Elite General's overshields were gone, Jun fired two more shots at the head of the General, one to crack the normal shield and the other to deliver the coup de grace.

After all the Elites had been killed, Jun rejoined the rest of the team, and the SPARTANs moved up the ramp on the right side, past the killed Elite General, and through a small office to a locked door with the ONI symbol on it. "This is it, in here", Carter stated. Opening the door, 6 and the rest of the team cautiously entered the room, which appeared to be empty, minus four dead UNSC troopers and a mounted M274H behind a sandbag wall.

"Looks like they got themselves cornered", Jun commented. "That, or they were committed to the position", Carted replied.

"I'm going with cornered. There's nothing here", Emile declared.

"No load-bearing columns here, either", Jun added, "Sir, if we're supposed to blow this place, this ain't the spot to do it."

"Dot, check your vector", Carter requested.

"Vector confirmed", Dot answered. "Commander, we are precisely where ONI has directed- Apologies. Coordinates revised. Please confirm?"

"_Revised_?", Carter asked in confusion.

"By an AI of unknown origin", Dot continued, "Whose clearance is well above my own."

"Well, it's pointing us a click and a half east and _two thousand feet underground_", Jun commented. "And I didn't bring my shovel, Commander", Emile remarked. "Sir, I say we go AI-free on this one", Jun requested, "Obviously, these coordinates are junk, and the longer we go chasing them-"

Jun was interrupted by a sudden grinding noise. Noble Team quickly aimed down their sights and backed up. One of the walls in the dead-end opened up to reveal a hidden passageway. Noble Team slowly moved forwards, weapons raised. "What is this, Dot?", Carter questioned.

"Our revised route, Commander", she replied.

As the secret door behind them shut, the SPARTANs continued down the corridor and found a tram, which they entered. "Your new AI friend tell you anything else, Dot?", Carter asked. "Dot?"

The holographic viewscreen inside the cart turned on, and the team was surprised to see Dr. Halsey. "Apologies for the unusual security measures, Commander, but the stakes demand it", she explained.

"Dr. Halsey", Carter replied in surprise, "Casualty reports have you listed as-"

"Yes, well, as they say, news of my death has been greatly exaggerated", Halsey continued, "However I only wish the same could be said for the rest of Noble Team."

"We all do, ma'am", Carter sighed.

"It may please you to learn the data module Noble 2 procured from the Visegrad Station contained precisely what my scientist promised: a latchkey discovery. It has unlocked, at last, the secrets of this excavation", Halsey commented.

"Not sure I quite understood", Carter replied.

"Your orders were a pretext to bring you to me", Halsey explained, "You are here, Team Noble, to assure the delivery of this vital data to a secure location."

"But Doctor, our orders are to destroy sensitive material-"

"Others will handle the demolition", she quickly replied.

"I'll need to confirm this directive with Command-"

"Colonel Holland will be briefed. You belong to ONI now."

As the tram descended down the tunnel, an enormous, icy underground cavern came into view, with a massive disk-shaped artifact partially buried in the glacier. "Before you", Halsey explained, "is an alien artifact neither human nor Covenant in origin. Advanced beyond our comprehension, until now. Thanks to Noble 2, the decrypting of its data is nearly complete."

"Well whatever we're doin' down here, we'd better make it quick", Emile stated.

"The decrypting process is still underway", Halsey explained.

"I don't think you understand, we're out of time. If it isn't portable when we reach you, it's gonna get buried", Carter replied.

"Bury this and you bury mankind's best chance for survival", Halsey snapped. "Commander, you've been wondering what your SPARTANs died for? They died for this. _Please_. Buy me all the time you can", she begged.

The elevator stopped, and the four SPARTANs stepped out.


	10. Holdout

"Let's find Halsey's lab. Move!", Carter ordered. As the SPARTANs sprinted over a bridge which was crossing a large gorge, Jun eyed a stationary M8 ADS "Wolf Spider" sentry turret, which he pointed out. Close by was Halsey's laboratory, as well as several other locked research facilities nearby. An ONI officer informed Noble Team over comms that there were three other inactive Wolf Spider turrets nearby, and that the SPARTANs would be able to get them online manually. He also informed them that if the turrets took too much damage, they would automatically lock down and recharge, and would have to be reactivated manually. At Carter's instruction, Noble 6 went to go activate the remaining sentries, while the rest of the team set up a defense at the entrance to the lab.

Once the last Wolf Spider had been brought online, 6 hurried back up to the laboratory deck, where he was presented with numerous weapons, including rocket launchers, grenade launchers, and a Spartan Laser, as well as extra equipment and ammo, as well as a pair of parked Mongooses. A few moments later, two Covenant Phantoms entered the cavern, one ferrying a Wraith. The first Phantom dropped its Wraith on the other side of the chasm, while the infantry jumped out, a large pack of Grunts and Jackals, while the other Phantom deployed its forces on the other side of a rock formation that forked the two areas. As soon as the Covenant footsoldiers hopped out, one of the Phantoms hovered in place to provide fire support, while the other one flew away to pick up more reinforcements.

As soon as the Grunts and Jackals were in range, the sentry guns opened fire on the enemy troops, drilling them up with their built-in Autocannons. While the majority of the deployed forces had been gunned down, some of the Grunts were able to survive, and threw several plasma grenades at one of the turrets, badly damaging it. On the other side of the formation, the Wraith had targeted one of the Wolf Spiders, and with two ranged plasma mortars, deactivated the turret. With two sentries down and the first wave of remaining Grunts quickly approaching, Noble 6 grabbed a grenade launcher, and using the remote detonation function, launched a grenade 10 feet ahead of the Grunts. Soon enough, the Grunts passed over the grenade, blissfully unaware, and when the grenade was in the center of the Grunts, 6 released the trigger, sending the Grunts flying in all directions.

At this moment, two more Phantoms showed up, with three Banshees as company. The Wraith was still bombarding the compound with mortars, and the Banshees joined in, launching Fuel Rods at the SPARTANs. Noble 6 quickly grabbed the Spartan Laser, aimed at one of the Banshees, and fired, violently splitting the fighter in half. Once the Spartan Laser cooled down, 6 targeted another one, and blasted through its side, sending it crashing into the chasm below. The remaining Banshee, now aware of 6's threat, retreated to the distant area of the cavern, out of 6's range.

6 temporarily discarded the Spartan Laser for a rocket launcher, and took a Mongoose down to the disabled Wolf Spiders. Once they were both brought back online, 6's attention shifted to the Wraith. Driving full speed towards it, 6 dove out and quickly fired two missiles at the Wraith's cockpit, which destroyed the tank in a spectacular explosion. However, it was short-lived, as both of the Phantoms were carrying Wraiths. Noble 6 immediately pulled back to the lab as the Phantoms each deployed their new payload, composed of additional Grunts and Jackals and the two Wraiths, as well as a pack of Brutes. "Head's up, we've got more trouble!", Jun announced.

"Hold on, SPARTANs, I'm getting close", Halsey replied.

Pulling out their DMRs, Jun and Noble 6 began picking off as many Brutes as they could; while the sentry turrets were extremely effective at mowing down Grunts and Jackals, the Brutes were a bit more of a challenge for the turrets, not to mention that the Wraiths, as well as the Banshee, which had rejoined the battle, were attacking the turrets. As soon as the two Phantoms had delivered their reinforcements, they flew out of the cavern, but the minute they left, another Phantom dropped in, delivering more troops by the elevator that the SPARTANs arrived. "Another Phantom, dropping troops to flank us!", Carter announced.

"Maybe we can grab that Banshee and bring the fight to them", Jun suggested.

Heeding Jun's idea, 6 equipped himself with a jetpack from the armory, and waited for the Banshee to get close enough. Once it was in range, 6 activated his thrusters and flew up to it. Grabbing onto one of the wings, 6 manually opened the cockpit and quickly shoved the unsuspecting Elite pilot out, which fell to its death. 6 hopped into the Banshee, and after briefly learning how to operate the craft, was moving through the open cavern, and began blasting the Wraiths with Fuel Rods. The Wraiths attempted to shoot 6's Banshee down, but unlike the Falcon that 6 had flown previously, Banshees, like UNSC Sabres, were extremely fast and maneuverable. Once the first Wraith was taken care of, 6 immediately attacked the other one, which suffered the same inevitable fate as the previous Wraith. After the two Wraiths had been killed, 6 resumed bombarding the remaining Brutes and Grunts, which were already being hammered by the sentry guns as well as Noble Team.

"Package is ready; just a little bit more...", Halsey announced.

One final Phantom appeared, and was heading straight to the front of the lab, instead of at the base of the hill. "More Covenant! Get your defenses ready, 6!", Carter declared. Reclaiming his Spartan Laser, 6 and the rest of Noble Team readied their weapons as the Phantom landed, deploying a team of Ranger Elites lead by an Elite General with an energy sword, as well as an Engineer. Carter and Jun directed their fire on the Engineer and the Rangers, while 6 and Emile held their ground against the Elite General. 6 stood back and watched with interest as Emile boldly charged the Elite head-on, evading each sword lunge. Emile blasted at the Elite three times with his shotgun, before throwing it to the ground and pulling out his kukri. Emile knocked the General to the ground, and thrust the knife into the Elite's windpipe. The dying Elite garbled briefly before its injuries took toll. The Elite, which had lost a large amount of blood, died, and after picking up his weapon and putting his bloodied kukri back in its sheath, Emile rejoined the , who'd finished off the remaining Covenant, back at the laboratory entrance.

"Well done, SPARTANs", Halsey praised, "I'm opening the laboratory door." The SPARTANs quickly moved into the building, and sealed the door behind them.


	11. Departure

After sealing the entrance to the laboratory, the SPARTANs ran down the corridor to Dr. Halsey's position. They quickly found Halsey her central lab, with an amazing hovering artifact floating outside of the room. "What _is _this stuff?", Emile asked. "_Knowledge_", Halsey replied, still preparing the package. "A birthright from an ancient civilization. This AI is its custodian, and she has chosen you as her couriers." Dr. Halsey moved out of the way, and the SPARTANs noticed an AI sitting on a holotank, analyzing the alien data.

"Chosen?", Emile questioned, "By an AI?"

"By _this _AI, yes", Halsey explained. "Her measure of you carries as much weight as my own, perhaps more. You are to take her to the UNSC ship-breaking yards in Aszod. There, you will find a Halcyon-class Cruiser waiting to take her off-planet."

"I understand", Carter replied.

"Do you?", Halsey asked. "Mankind is outmatched. When Reach falls- and it will fall, our annihilation is all but certain. _Unless _we can glean from this artifact a defense against the Covenant. A game-changer. On the level of the conical bullet in the nineteenth century, or faster-than-light travel in the twenty-third."

"And what if we can't?", Carter commented.

"An apt question, if there was someplace else to place our hope", Halsey replied. "There is not."

The AI stood up, and looked at Halsey, who glanced back. Shutting off the AI's projection, Halsey pulled a data storage unit out of the holotank, and appeared to be approaching Carter, but the SPARTANs were confused when it was Noble 6 who had been handed the package.

"Take it Lieutenant. She has made her choice", Halsey explained.

Carter nodded to Noble 6, who put his hands on the package. "Do you have it?", Halsey asked.

"Yes"

"Say the words, please", Halsey requested.

"I have it", 6 confirmed.

Halsey released her grip on the package, and walked out of the lab, with Noble Team following.

Exiting the underground facility via a service tunnel, Noble Team and Dr. Halsey came across two Pelicans, one being Noble 48, Noble's Pelican asset. "Dr. Halsey, Noble 3 will escort you to CASTLE Base", Carter declared.

"I require no escort, Commander", Halsey replied.

"Jun, make sure nothing gets into enemy hands!", Carter ordered.

"I'll do what's necessary sir", Jun replied. "Good luck."

"You too, rifleman." The two SPARTANs nodded in respect to each other, before heading to their respective Pelicans. Climbing aboard Noble 48, Carter set down his weapon, and warmed up the Pelican, as Emile and Noble 6 climbed aboard. "I need a heading, Dot", Carter requested. "At three kilometers north, turn right", Dot replied.

"Which leads to?"

"The ship-breaking yards in Aszod. The only off-planet extraction point left on this continent. Small-scale air attacks have decimated many convoys en-route. An armada of Covenant cruisers is hastening to the site as well. UNSC cruiser, _Pillar of Autumn_ is awaiting your arrival."

"Wouldn't be a Noble mission if it was easy", Carter remarked. 6 and Emile looked out from the Pelican at the surface of the ice shelf, which suddenly crumbled apart from the detonated explosives. As the ceiling caved in from the planted explosives, the surrounding waters rapidly poured in, flooding any remaining trace of the artifact or the laboratory.


	12. Carter's Sacrifice

_August 30, 2552_

"Noble Leader, seek immediate medical attention. Noble Leader, please respond", Auntie Dot requested with concern over comms. Aboard Noble 48, Noble 6 walked towards the cockpit, but was suddenly thrown off of his feet by several plasma blasts. Turning around, 6 spotted two Banshees and a Phantom, relentlessly pursuing the Pelican through the winding desert canyons of Aszod. Emile, standing on the tailgate, returned fire at the enemy fighters with a grenade launcher.

En-route to the UNSC cruiser, _Pillar of Autumn_, Noble Team had passed over a Covenant supply station on a small plateau. Apparently they had been spotted, because now they were under attack. Taking aim at one of the Banshees, Emile fired a manual grenade next to it and detonated it close by. The EMP disabled the Banshee, which swooped and slammed into its wingman, destroying both fighters, but the Phantom was still in pursuit of the now badly-damaged Noble 48. 6 moved back up to the cockpit as Carter, whose face and armor was covered in blood. "Please respond, Sierra 259. You are alarming me", Dot asked.

"Not sure how long she's gonna stay together", Carter declared. "Skies are jammed up anyways. Gotta get you off her, Lieutenant!"

"Sir, you-"

"Don't wanna hear it", Carter interrupted. "Get the package to the _Autumn_!"

"Done", 6 replied.

"Not yet it's not", Carter continued. "Emile, go with him, it's a ground-game now!"

After firing his last grenade at another pair of Banshees, Emile dropped the empty grenade launcher out the troop bay, before turning to face Carter. "It's been an honor, sir!", he acknowledged, giving Carter a fist-to-chest salute.

"Likewise", Carter replied. "I'll do what I can to draw their fire." Nobles 4 and 6 turned to get into position. "6!", Carter quickly added, "That AI chose you. She made the right choice."

Gripping tightly onto the data package, 6 and Emile got into position on the tailgate, and looked to Carter for instructions. "On my mark!", he began with his fingers. Carter counted down to one, before curling his fingers into a fist. "Mark!", he shouted. 6 and Emile jumped out of the Pelican, arms and legs at their sides, sliding down the smooth side of the canyon wall. When the two SPARTANs reached the ground, 6 looked up to spot Noble 48 fly overhead, closely pursued by the two fighters. Checking the package for damage, 6 placed it on his back, before pulling out his assault rifle and rejoining Emile on the cliffside, overlooking a large area populated with Covenant below. Looking up in the sky, Noble 6 spotted Carter's damaged Pelican, as well as the two Banshees firing at it. "You still with us, Commander?", Emile asked. "Stay low. Let me draw the heat. Just deliver that package", he replied back. Looking to the east, 6 spotted their destination in the distance: the colossal Halcyon-class cruiser _Pillar of Autumn_.

Moving down the hillside, 6 and Emile were engaged by the medium-sized Covenant force in the cliffside area below, but were easily dispatched by the duo. Next to a small building were two abandoned Mongooses, as well as a supply crate containing a few rocket launchers. 6 picked up a rocket launcher and hopped onto one of the Mongooses, while Emile got on his and followed 6.

After crossing a bridge while being attacked by a small group of Banshees, the two SPARTANs entered another open area with a winding road, but suddenly four Covenant Orbital Insertion Pods landed around them, each one carrying a team of Grunts with Fuel Rod Guns. To make matters worse, a Scarab walker that had been dropped from an orbiting Covenant vessel landed in the area in front of 6 and Emile. "Scarab!", Emile shouted. "Do not engage; gun it, 6!" At that moment, a second Scarab appeared, and heeding Emile's warning, 6 continued speeding through the Covenant force. "Get the package outta there! Remember your objective!", Carter ordered. Noble 48 appeared from over a rock formation and opened fire on the Scarabs, who then focused on the damaged Pelican rather than the two Mongooses speeding under them. Following the cliffside road, the two SPARTANs passed a Phantom, which was preparing to deliver a Wraith to the area ahead. Noble 6 and Emile passed through a short tunnel through the ridge, but spotted that the bridge ahead was out, presumably by the Phantom. Driving at full speed, the two SPARTANs soared across the gap before smashing into a roadblock ahead.

Realizing that they would be forced to dismount their rides, 6 and Emile hopped the barricade, into the area ahead, which was occupied by Covenant. The Phantom carrying the Wraith had delivered the tank, and was just taking off. Amidst the parked and destroyed trucks were Brutes, and up on a ledge were three Skirmishers with Needle Rifles. The Wraith spotted the SPARTANs, and began firing at them. 6 pulled out the rocket launcher, and fired the two chambered rockets at the Wraith, which both scored direct hits, destroying the tank. 6 dropped the rocket launcher in favor of a DMR, and used it to kill the enemy snipers. Once they were all neutralized, 6 pulled out his assault rifle, and with support from Emile, proceeded to wipe out the remaining Brute presence. When all of the Brutes were killed, the two SPARTANs moved towards the ledge where the Skirmishers had been eliminated, and dropped down into a sandstone cave.

"Noble, you've got a... situation", Carter warned. As the two SPARTANs exited the cave, a Scarab tank spotted them, and positioned itself onto the ledge, charging up its front-mounted focus cannon. "Mother... we can get past it, sir!", Emile exclaimed. "No you can't. Not without help", Carter stated. "But Commander, you don't have the firepower!", Emile questioned. Flying into view, Carter strafed past the distracted Scarab, which stopped charging its cannon to get a better aim at Noble 48. "I've got the mass", Carter answered. "Solid copy", Emile replied, realizing Carter's next course of action. "Hit 'em hard, boss." Carter circled the Scarab a second time, preparing a ballistic trajectory. "You're on your own Noble. Carter out."

Flying straight towards the side of the Scarab, Noble 48 slammed into the target with tremendous force in a large blast. The side of the walker burst into flames as explosions rocked throughout the Scarab, which was struggling to remain standing. As more explosions ripped through the interior of the Scarab, it let out a dying scream before it lost its footing, falling from its perch to the ground below, crashing with a large explosion. 6 stood in awe, acknowledging their leader's sacrifice, and now aware that he and Emile were the only remaining SPARTANs on the ground.

"Crevice to the east. Let's go", Emile suggested. As Emile moved into the cave, Noble 6 took one final look at the smoldering wreckage of the Scarab, before turning and moving on towards the _Pillar of Autumn_.


	13. The Pillar of Autumn

Continuing through the caves, 6 and Emile were suddenly attacked by a swarm of Drones, which were hiding in the eroded rocks. 6 and Emile relentlessly fired at the swarm, eventually killing them all. The two SPARTANs continued to push through the cavern, but were once again assaulted by another swarm of Drones, as well as several Skirmishers. While Emile terminated the Skirmishers, Noble 6 sprayed death at the insectoids with his assault rifle. Unlike his previous encounter in New Alexandria, there weren't as many Drones as before, and there weren't any additional Drones coming to reinforce the rest of the swarm, which made taking the creatures down a lot easier. After Emile had eliminated the Skirmishers, he assisted Noble 6 in scrapping the final two Drones. The SPARTANs then found the cave's exit, and found themselves overlooking the Aszod shipyard.

Just up ahead was a Sinoviet facility, with a decommissioned UNSC Frigate, the _Commonwealth_, serving as a battlefield for Covenant forces and UNSC Army troopers locked in combat. Equipping his DMR, 6 picked off as many Covenant troops as he could, before the two SPARTANs moved down to assist the troopers in repelling the Covenant. The duo suddenly received a transmission.

"This is Captain Keyes of the _Pillar of Autumn_. We are tracking you, Noble, and we've begun our launch sequence. Proceed to drydock, Platform D. I'll be on it myself to receive the package."

"We'll be there, sir", Emile replied.

"Better be soldier", Keyes added, "Because my countdown has no abort."

"Understood. We've got to get to the drydock, Priority 1", Emile relayed to 6. The pair of SPARTANs hopped down from the ledge to the troopers' position. "Sierra, you've made it!", one of the troopers congratulated. "So far. TAC eval?" Emile asked. "They've got this facility covered from all angles. We'll give you covering fire. Find a flanking route, there has to be a way around", the trooper explained. While Emile lead the platoon of soldiers through the ship to the other side, 6 navigated his way up the ship, where he found some additional firepower: a sniper rifle and a Spartan Laser, which he decided to hold onto. Picking up the sniper rifle, 6 resumed sniping the Covenant resistance. Three Shade turrets were the main priority, as they were preventing Emile's group from advancing. One by one, 6 eliminated the gunners and shifted to the next hazard, a Ghost. Using his remaining shot, Noble 6 sniped the driver out, and moved back down to regroup with Emile.

Stacking up at the entrance to the compound, the two SPARTANs moved inside, but were attacked by a pair of Elites and three Grunts. The SPARTANs quickly killed all of the Covenant and penetrated further into the facility, while the Army troopers secured the entrance to the building. After moving down a hallway and making a right, the SPARTANs arrived in an office overlooking a smelting area, which the Covenant had dug into. Inside the office were two UNSC soldiers, but instead of Army troopers, they were UNSC Marines, which had been deployed by the _Pillar of Autumn _to help secure the compound. "SPARTANs", one of the Marines stated, "Drydock's through that structure across the way. Punch through, we'll back you up!"

After clearing the refinery and avoiding a Phantom, the SPARTANs and the Marines encountered a pair of Hunters, which immediately killed one of the Marines. Remembering the Spartan Laser he had been carrying, 6 armed his weapon, and lined up a shot which killed both Hunters simultaneously. Once the Hunters had been killed, 6 put away his Spartan Laser, and dropped his DMR for a shotgun on a supply rack close by. Another team of Marines holed up in the building ahead opened the doors, and 6 and Emile entered. On the catwalks above were four Jackals with Needle Rifles, but suddenly an Elite Ultra, armed with an energy sword appeared around the corner. The Marines and SPARTANs forgot about the Jackals and opened fire at the charging Elite. The Elite decapitated one of the Marines, and stabbed another in the torso, before 6 and Emile brought it down.

"Keyes to Noble Team. We're running out of time here, SPARTANs!", Captain Keyes alerted. "Solid copy, sir, we're close", Emile replied. The SPARTANs and the team of Marines fought their way up the stairs and across the catwalk, which was above another open furnace. Emile grabbed one of the Jackals by the neck, and hurled it into the furnace below, giving it a fiery and painful death.

After taking out another fireteam of Covenant, 6 and Emile moved up a set of stairs, and found another team of Marines, who tagged along. The SPARTANs moved through a small building, and finally emerged at the drydock, where the enormous Halcyon-class _Pillar of Autumn _was waiting for them. "What's the situation?", Emile asked the Marines.

"We rigged a mass-driver up top; we lose that, the _Autumn _has no covering fire; she'll never make orbit", one of the troopers replied back. "Noble to Keyes, we're at the pad", Emile announced.

"Copy Noble, my Pelican's ready", Keyes replied. "Clear an LZ. I'll meet you there."

"Will do sir", Emile replied back. "This is it, 6", he said to Noble 6. "I'll man the big gun. You just get to the platform and deliver that package." While Emile went up to the mass-driver cannon, Noble 6 and the Marines killed a nearby pack of Jackals. Immediately after, 6 spotted several Phantoms converging on their position, but suddenly 6 heard a loud noise, and a straight, white, accelerated laser blast cracked straight through one of the Phantoms, which shattered apart in a magnificent explosion. "I'm in position!", Emile declared. "I'll take out as many dropships as I can!" Two of the Phantoms landed, and deposited a large platoon of Brutes, Grunts and Jackals, before taking off. The Covenant force began attacking the Marine company in force, who holed up in one of the offices close to the pad. Inside the building, 6 found an assortment of weaponry: assault rifles, shotguns, pistols, grenade launchers, DMRs and a sniper rifle. The two armies clashed in an intense firefight, while 6 picked off as many Brutes as he could with his sniper rifle.

Even though Emile was destroying as many Phantoms as he could, another pair of Phantoms landed, dropping off dozens of Covenant soldiers. One Phantom landed above 6, who was immediately caught by surprise by two Chief Brutes with Gravity Hammers. Quickly taking aim, 6 struck a headshot on a Chieftain, killing it instantly. The other Brute charged straight towards 6, but the SPARTAN quickly dove out of the way, and the Brute fell over the rail to its death. 6 continued picking off Brutes, and eventually, despite the odds, 6 and the remaining Marines emerged victorious.

"Noble to Keyes, pad is clear!", Emile announced. "On my way", Keyes replied. "6, time for you to leave", Emile said to 6. "Get the package to the pad, and get your ass off this planet. I've got your back."


	14. Revenge

Noble 6 moved down past the piled bodies of dead Covenant and UNSC Marines to the landing platform, and looked towards the _Pillar of Autumn_, where he spotted Captain Keye's Pelican exit one of the hangars and approach the pad, with another Pelican as an escort. Once Keye's Pelican reached the pad, it turned around and opened its troop compartment, as 6 pulled out the package.

"Good to see you, SPARTAN", said Keyes, shaking Noble 6's hand while collecting the package, "Halsey assured me I could count on you."

"Not just me, sir", 6 sighed.

"They'll be remembered", Keyes assured. Captain Keyes turned back around to board his Pelican, but suddenly halted, before looking up into the sky and spotting a CCS-Class Battlecruiser slowly converging on their location. "Cruiser, adjusting heading for the _Autumn_!", Keyes shouted. "Noble 4, I need fire on that cruiser, or we're not getting out of here!"

"You'll have your window, sir", Emile replied, turning the mass-driver towards the cruiser.

"Bridge, this is the Captain, we have the package. Returning to the _Autumn_, over", Keyes reported. Suddenly several plasma blasts from a Phantom that had suddenly appeared bombarded Keye's escort. The Pelican was struck in the left wing and rear engine. With a sudden explosion, the burning Pelican flipped upside down. Noble 6 quickly ducked out of the way as the Pelican crashed down on the pad before sliding over the edge, crashing at the bottom. Quickly equipping his DMR, 6 took aim at the Phantom, which was now hovering above the mass-driver cannon. A pair of Elite Zealots dropped out of the Phantom. The first Zealot tackled Emile out of the operating seat, and raised its energy sword at Emile. Emile fired a quick blast at the Elite's feet with his shotgun, and the Elite fell backwards. Emile put the barrel of the shotgun in the Zealot's mouth, and killed it.

"Who's next?", Emile growled at the dead Zealot. Suddenly Noble 6 spotted a second Zealot grab Emile by the neck from behind, and watched in horror as the Zealot thrust its sword through Emile's torso. "I'm ready!", he shouted in his last breath, "How 'bout you?" With his remaining energy, Emile pulled out his kukri and thrust it into the Elite's neck. The Zealot and Emile both dropped to the ground dead.

As 6 stood staring in horror and rage at the tragedy that had unfolded in front of him, Keye's Pelican, which had barely avoided the Phantom, pulled back up to the pad. "Lieutenant!", one of the Marines shouted, holding his hand out to 6, "Get aboard! We've gotta get the hell out of here!". 6 turned around to look at the mass-driver, and turned back around to the Pelican. "_Negative_. I have the gun. Good luck, Sir", 6 replied with determination.

"Good luck to you, SPARTAN", Keyes sighed in respect. The Pelican closed its troop bay doors and flew back up to the _Pillar of Autumn_ while Noble 6 moved up towards the mass-driver to avenge his fallen comrade.

While heading up the platforms, Noble 6 was confronted by two Elite Zealots, one with a concussion rifle and another one with dual plasma rifles, who were accompanied by five Grunts. 6 quickly nailed the first Elite in the head with a sniper shot, and killed the Grunts with the remaining ammo, before pulling out the Spartan Laser that he had been carrying and blasting a hole through the other Elite's head. Dropping his empty sniper rifle for his DMR, 6 slowly and cautiously entered the building, spotting a third Zealot, but the only thing on his mind was the Visegrad Field Marshall, that was now responsible for two of the deaths of his fellow SPARTANs. Suddenly overcome by rage and hurt, 6 instantly killed the Zealot with his laser, before hurling it at the Field Marshall with all his might, breaking its two right mandibles. The beast roared in pain, before firing at the SPARTAN with its Fuel Rod Gun. The SPARTAN ducked, and was able to evade the Elite's fire until he was right in front of the Field Marshall. The Elite growled in annoyance, before dropping its Fuel Rod Gun and attempting to pull out its energy sword. The Elite was surprised when 6 quickly shot the sword out of its hand and grabbed it in midair.

"_Not this time_", 6 quietly growled at the Elite, before stabbing the Elite in the abdomen with the sword. The Elite dropped back in pain, and before it died, watched in horror and fear as 6 thrust his combat knife into the Elite's eye. When the Elite was dead, 6 pulled the knife out of the lifeless monster, and moved up the platform to the mass-driver cannon. Against the rail was the motionless, bloody corpse of Emile, and on the ground next to him were the two Elites he'd slaughtered. At Keye's order, 6 climbed up the ladder to the operating seat, and aimed the gun for the Covenant Battlecruiser. Several Phantoms arrived in a desperate attempt to stop 6, who merely split the dropships in half with the powerful MAC blasts. Eventually the Battlecruiser was in range, and approached the _Autumn_, charging its glassing beam. "Fire now, SPARTAN, hit her in the gut!", Keyes shouted. Noble 6 quickly aimed the cannon at the underside of the ship, primed a shot and fired, hitting the ship in the glassing port with explosive results.

"Good guns, SPARTAN. All stations, brace for cast-off", Keyes announced. Detaching from its supports, the _Pillar of Autumn _lifted up with the aid of atmospheric rocket boosters. 6 watched from the platform as his only chance to escape the planet ejected its rocket pods and flew up towards space. "This is the _Pillar of Autumn_. We are away. And the package is with us", Keyes announced. 6 gazed back towards the Covenant Battlecruiser he had shot down, which crashed to the ground in the distance.


End file.
